The invention pertains to general systems for producing laser radiation.
Lasers have broad application in optics and communication. Unfortunately, many lasers have several inherent sources of inefficiency and inconvenience. Incoherent laser pumps tend to be very energy inefficient, being able to deliver only a small fraction of their input power to the laser sample (target) itself. Moreover, what energy does reach the laser target from the excitation source is rarely well matched to the quantum transitions upon which the laser system is based, thereby wasting a great deal more energy. Finally, many laser systems whose terminal state is the ground manifold typically require cooling of the laser sample so as to insure that the lower laser levels are depopulated prior to pumping. Such cryogenics are costly and bulky.